Declaring that there is a reservoir of untapped sporting talent in Barbados and the rest of the region, Minister of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment Charles Griffith has thrown out a challenge to regional sporting bodies to ensure that sporting disciplines are used as an avenue to lift young people out of poverty.
In fact, pointing out that Barbados and others in the region were still “in the starting blocks” when it came to development of sports, Griffith said there was a need for the buildout of several areas.
“I think that if we are to find those diamonds in the rough, there is a reservoir of untapped talent within the region. It is just a matter of us discovering that reservoir, that untapped talent, and helping those youngsters to run out of poverty,” Griffith told the 21st annual general assembly of the Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees (CANOC), which was held at the Barbados Hilton Resort on Sunday under the theme Beyond Possible.
Sharing what he said was a wish list, Griffith expressed a desire for the development of coaches for people with disabilities; the development of coaches overall; the implementation of more sporting competitions in the region; introduction of new technology to help athletes in their preparation and training; the sporting fraternity to help with regional transportation or form partnerships with airlines; and the development of specialised degree programmes in sports to develop more specialists.
Griffith also expressed a need for the development of a sports database so that best practices can be analysed and shared, the need for more research and development within CANOC to help member associations, and for regional teams to be formed in several sporting disciplines to represent the Caribbean in various international games.
“These are some of the things that I believe if we are to move forward as a region and if we are to stand on a podium on a regular basis, that there must be an effort where all of us are working in concert to achieve a single goal,” said Griffith.
“I think it is an absolute must now that we do this because if not, a lot of our talent, a lot of the diamonds in the rough that we would want to discover and uncover, will remain in a dormant state forever,” he warned.
In relation to regional transportation, Griffith said this was “a massive problem”, as he recalled that last month at least two of Barbados’ national teams were “stranded and could not get home”.
“I am suggesting that if we do not, in one sense, purchase a plane to move our athletes across the region, then we should approach one of the carriers to be that dedicated carrier to move our athletes from [one] competition to the next,” he said.
Griffith said the time has come for residents in the region to move away from the mindset that sports is “not serious business” and that people only pursue sports because they are not academics.
He said the Barbados Government remained committed to developing the various sporting disciplines, as he pointed to some of the work currently being done including assistance being provided at the Gymnasium and the build out of community programmes.
“We are doing a number of things locally to ensure that we can move our young people to a different level,” said Griffith, as he saluted the Barbados Olympic Association (BOA) for its work over the years.
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